Man Listening To Disc
This is not bad --
ambling along 44th Street
with Sonny Rollins for company,
his music flowing through the soft calipers
of these earphones,
as if he were right beside me
on this clear day in March,
the pavement sparkling with sunlight,
pigeons fluttering off the curb,
nodding over a profusion of bread crumbs.
In fact, I would say
my delight at being suffused
with phrases from his saxophone --
some like honey, some like vinegar --
is surpassed only by my gratitude
to Tommy Potter for taking the time
to join us on this breezy afternoon
with his most unwieldy bass
and to the esteemed Arthur Taylor
who is somehow managing to navigate
this crowd with his cumbersome drums.
And I bow deeply to Thelonious Monk
for figuring out a way
to motorize -- or whatever -- his huge piano
so he could be with us today.
This music is loud yet so confidential.
I cannot help feeling even more
like the center of the universe
than usual as I walk along to a rapid
little version of "The Way You Look Tonight,"
and all I can say to my fellow pedestrians,
to the woman in the white sweater,
the man in the tan raincoat and the heavy glasses,
who mistake themselves for the center of the universe --
all I can say is watch your step,
because the five of us, instruments and all,
are about to angle over
to the south side of the street
and then, in our own tightly knit way,
turn the corner at Sixth Avenue.
And if any of you are curious
about where this aggregation,
this whole battery-powered crew,
is headed, let us just say
that the real center of the universe,
the only true point of view,
is full of hope that he,
the hub of the cosmos
with his hair blown sideways,
will eventually make it all the way downtown.
poem by Billy Collins
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Related quotes
Centered
My inner light and my inner darkness.
My positive and my negative.
In the center, my neutral or balance.
My peace, will not allow my scale to tip.
Too positive, taken advantage of.
Too negative, taking advantage of.
Mind full of others, or mindless.
Full of myself and void of others.
Full of others and void of myself.
Minding my business or another's.
Apathy or arrogance.
Not centered.
But self centered, the center of attention, the center of the universe.
If others are my universe, then I don't know who I am.
I am lost.
I find myself.
I create my universe.
If I worry about where I have been, or where I am going,
Then I cannot just be.
A creation with too many directions.
What I became, is first,
What I become, is last,
What I be, is now.
Which is all I truly only have.
Where I have been,
Where I am going.
Is the end of where I was.
The beginning of where I will be.
And the revelation of where I am at.
poem by Ryan Lee Morris
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
One Song
I am the universe
The sun, the moon and sea
I am the energy
4 that is what I believe
I can be contradiction
Cuz that is all I see
But I am the universe
And the universe is me
I am the one song (Ah yes)
And that one song is free
All things come from this one song (Yes they do, uh)
The garden and the tree
If everything, everything is present
What is will always be
This here is the first and the last song
And all that come between
When language falls like a wounded soldier
And it's covered by the sea
All the sadness
All these unanswered questions
Keep me company
(Company, company, company come 2 me, come 2 me please!)
Here at the center of it all
(I know)
I know that U can only come from me
(I am the universe)
Yes it will, oh, yes it will
(The sun, the moon and sea)
Where else is it gonna come from but me?
(I am the universe)
Oh my, my my my my my my my universe
(The universe is me)
(I am the universe)
(The sun, the moon and sea)
(I am the universe)
(We are the universe) {x2}
(The universe is me)
One truth (One truth)
One song (One song)
One energy
song performed by by Prince
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Where Are We In This Too Large Universe?
WHERE ARE WE IN THIS TOO LARGE UNIVERSE?
Where are we in this too large universe?
Once they told us we were the center
And in our little time all History turning -
Now even Time has gone far beyond us
And our little interval
Is so so so so small
We will be gone before even the closest galaxy to ours knows it –
Once we were the meaning of it all
And now we are a question
And a transition we ourselves may make to something senselessly strange-
I want to go home
To where we were the center of the universe
And God chose us
Because we
Were God’s poem.
poem by Shalom Freedman
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Our Paranoia
the uncured disease of mankind had always been
that the earth is the center of the universe
that man is at the center of all these
that he is loved by the skies and the seas and the mountains
that i am the center of your attraction
or that i have loved you truly too
these are the demands of illusions
the sun is just one of the thousand stars
though it may be true that it is the center of our universe
that you may have loved me truly and i may think that i am the only
star in your universe
how hopeless can i be thinking that way
when the truth is just i am just a dust, a speck of this vast space of dusts
one night i stand in the middle of the grass and looked at the stars
i feel so far and so tiny just like Venus that planet that glitters in the north.
human love is as small as a grain of sand, yet somehow we imagine that
as a Saturn in the planetary system.
i am not saying the truth that indeed we are nothing but an empty sigh.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
A man said to the universe:
A man said to the universe:
"Sir I exist!"
"However," replied the universe,
"The fact has not created in me
A sense of obligation."
poem by Stephen Crane
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Sammy You've Got Mail
I am imagining how you look today,
perhaps you do not have time
to cut your nails anymore
no time to trim your beard and
shape it like a nest for a bird
no time to wash & shampoo your hair
to give it a flowery smell
no time to brush your teeth to make
then appear pearly white to the girls
perhaps you have not taken a bath
for forty days and so you stink like
an unwanted skunk on the lake
why Sammy? don't you like the beauty
and goodness of life anymore?
why? do people shy away from you
or you shy away from them?
what did you put at the center of your
universe? God or you?
Sammy life has got a lot to offer
If and If you make God as its center.
Try it, and if all these else fails
Come to me I'll give you the best
Assistance for the suicide in your life.
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Me Against The Universe
I have traveled
for more than a millennium
to the center of space
My purpose?
My reason?
It's quite simple
yet
quite absurd
I have traveled far
through space
and time
to fight the dragon
which resides
in the center
of this universe
Oh yes
I am quite mad
Oh yes
this probably is
suicide
Do I care?
Do I fear?
I assure you
I should
BUT
I don't
I will fight
only with my mind
I will speak
only with my soul
I will challenge
only with my body
All who I am
all
who I have existed
as
All
in all
I will not back down
until there is
a victor
My eyes
are set
on this stupid goal
and I
will most likely die
But I ask you
Who else
has fought
the universe
alone?
poem by Justin Tallman Gonzalez
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Turn The Music Loud (Rock Lyrics) :
If you're looking for a great adventure honey.
Lookin' for the things you need.
If you're lookin' for times of passion baby.
Someone you can meet.
I suggest the local tavern honey.
I suggest a real good time.
You should try to throw a party baby.
Buy the bar a round.
Try to keep this party going till morning.
Bring along a crowd.
I suggest we go to your apartment baby.
Turn the music loud.
Turn the music way up loud now.
Turn the music loud.
Turn the music way up loud now.
Turn the music loud..
We can keep this party movin' honey.
If we turn the music loud.
Turn the music way up loud now.
Turn the music loud.
We can really crank it up now.
Just turn the music loud.
Turn the music way up loud now.
Turn the music loud.
Turn the music loud...
Rock Lyrics By Kim Robin Edwards
Copyright 1984,2009..
ALL rights reserved..
poem by Kim Robin Edwards
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Tommy
I went into a public-'ouse to get a pint o' beer,
The publican 'e up an' sez, "We serve no red-coats here."
The girls be'ind the bar they laughed an' giggled fit to die,
I outs into the street again an' to myself sez I:
O it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, go away";
But it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play,
The band begins to play, my boys, the band begins to play,
O it's "Thank you, Mister Atkins", when the band begins to play.
I went into a theatre as sober as could be,
They gave a drunk civilian room, but 'adn't none for me;
They sent me to the gallery or round the music-'alls,
But when it comes to fightin', Lord! they'll shove me in the stalls!
For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, wait outside";
But it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide,
The troopship's on the tide, my boys, the troopship's on the tide,
O it's "Special train for Atkins" when the trooper's on the tide.
Yes, makin' mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep
Is cheaper than them uniforms, an' they're starvation cheap;
An' hustlin' drunken soldiers when they're goin' large a bit
Is five times better business than paradin' in full kit.
Then it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, 'ow's yer soul?"
But it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll,
The drums begin to roll, my boys, the drums begin to roll,
O it's "Thin red line of 'eroes" when the drums begin to roll.
We aren't no thin red 'eroes, nor we aren't no blackguards too,
But single men in barricks, most remarkable like you;
An' if sometimes our conduck isn't all your fancy paints,
Why, single men in barricks don't grow into plaster saints;
While it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Tommy, fall be'ind",
But it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind,
There's trouble in the wind, my boys, there's trouble in the wind,
O it's "Please to walk in front, sir", when there's trouble in the wind.
You talk o' better food for us, an' schools, an' fires, an' all:
We'll wait for extry rations if you treat us rational.
Don't mess about the cook-room slops, but prove it to our face
The Widow's Uniform is not the soldier-man's disgrace.
For it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' "Chuck him out, the brute!"
But it's "Saviour of 'is country" when the guns begin to shoot;
An' it's Tommy this, an' Tommy that, an' anything you please;
An' Tommy ain't a bloomin' fool -- you bet that Tommy sees!
poem by Rudyard Kipling
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
For R.F.
this body
has no center
because it has no
edge
it has no here
and there
for if there is
how can this body
contain
a love that
has no measure?
the sun
is not the center of my universe
for i am never one
of your planets
i wish you are my star
my sun
my God
but i live and
go nowhere
to you
i understand
i am
nothing...
poem by Ric S. Bastasa
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Neither Snow
When all of a sudden the city air filled with snow,
the distinguishable flakes
blowing sideways,
looked like krill
fleeing the maw of an advancing whale.
At least they looked that way to me
from the taxi window,
and since I happened to be sitting
that fading Sunday afternoon
in the very center of the universe,
who was in a better position
to say what looked like what,
which thing resembled some other?
Yes, it was a run of white plankton
borne down the Avenue of the Americas
in the stream of the wind,
phosphorescent against the weighty buildings.
Which made the taxi itself,
yellow and slow-moving,
a kind of undersea creature,
I thought as I wiped the fog from the glass,
and me one of its protruding eyes,
an eye on a stem
swiveling this way and that
monitoring one side of its world,
observing tons of water
tons of people
colored signs and lights
and now a wildly blowing race of snow.
poem by William Taylor Collins
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
The Labyrinths Light
The Labyrinths Light
How beautiful the labyrinth.
Its center in clear view.
Reflecting light of soul in flight
Within the morning dew.
With no false starts
or broken hearts.
It takes you in its arms.
Lovingly it guides you,
enraptured by its charms.
The journey is our joy
The path it never ends.
The center of our universe
Within our spirit blends.
So follow the path of the labyrinth.
And find your heart at last.
For therein lies your future
In the wishes of your past.
poem by Lynne FincherSpringarden
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
The Corer
Like coagulant poetry,
This congealed core of universe,
Became the spider,
Multi-dimensional as it grew;
In the form of a great web,
Masquerading as heavy matter,
Of condensed time,
Of condensed memory,
Like coagulant poetry,
This congealed core of universe.
Like curdled helium,
Amidst thin hydrogen left behind,
Bubbles and illusions,
To be the center of Sun,
Like coagulant poetry,
To be the solar spider.
We in this congealed core of universe,
Effervesce no longer;
To weave the rainbow of human web,
To create the unforeseen,
The super-spider,
This rainbow of human web,
Textured by heavy genes,
Begotten of coagulant poetry.
Yet some delight in cored poetry,
In coring of this bubbled universe,
In coring of coreless illusions.
poem by Bhanu Padmo
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
In Alexandria, 31 B.C.
From his village near the outskirts of town,
still dust-covered from the journey in,
the peddler arrives. And "Incense!" "Gum!"
"The best olive oil!" "Perfume for your hair!"
he hawks through the streets. But with all the hubbub,
the music, the parades, who can hear him?
The crowd shoves him, drags him along, knocks him around.
And when he asks, now totally confused, "What's going on here?"
someone tosses him too the huge palace lie:
that Antony is winning in Greece.
poem by Constantine P. Cavafy
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
All I Did Was Admire Her Aloud
"Quiet, please, " I tell her,
"I want to hear the music."
She is sitting next to me again,
this time on a paisley couch,
a woman in a lime bikini I met
only this morning sprawled
on the Morse Avenue Beach.
All I did was admire her aloud,
not recognize her age, and an hour later
she brought me home with her.
Now she is curling into me again
and moaning at a remarkable pitch.
Finally she spits into my neck
what it's all about
this time and every time
"Honey…I am…coming."
poem by Donal Mahoney
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
The impact of a hammer on your thumb
despite the sign
"No peddlers here"
a woman rang at my door
"I only want to ask you just one simple question"
normally I would say
'No"
'I don't socialize with interviewers'
I am never the reason
they will have a rise
of completed inquiries
usually I tell them polite
the right thing to do
from my kind of view
'Go''
however
somehow
today
this woman
looked right inside of me
telling
with her sparkling eyes
"No
YOU should go for this"
I have a survey called
"the impact of a hammer however not on a brad …"
and she waited briefly
while I was thinking
"is this happening"
"this is really weird"
asking a question that dumb
then
she finished her line
" but on your thumb"
after listening
and realizing
what she said
intuitively I thought
"No way"
I wanted to decline
my cooperation to this survey
however
somehow
today
this woman
looked right inside of me
telling
with her sparkling eyes
"Let me continue,
'You know I am not mad'
"Let me please surprise YOU"
I asked her
"What is this all about? "
"Later"
she said completing her sentence
"for the sake of this survey
I have to ask you first"
"Would you please describe to me
the feeling
just after your thumb
has been beaten
by a hammer? "
Now I knew
for sure
no more questions I would answer
not even a few
this woman
with her sparkling eyes
is really crazy.
how do I get rid of this her.
she was persistent
she explained
what the survey was really about
and I found out she wasn't
telling a "trained" story
"a hammer can hit you
or someone else
and it might look the same
it is not the hitting
causing the difference
it is that feeling of yours
which is
of course the reason
for feeling and dealing
your way with your pain"
somehow
today
this woman
looked right inside of me
telling
with her sparkling eyes
" Now you know
all the how's and why's
you are obliged to yourself
to finds ways
to recover from your pain
your life will never be the same
again'
she was a wise woman
telling me
what a fool I was
for a short
but allowed
amount of time
Or not?
I was wise enough
to answer the door
and find out more….
©Ellie Daphne van Stralen 2012.
poem by Ellie Daphne van Stralen
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!
Starting Tonight
Teddy gentry/s. alan taylor/john jarrard/greg fowler, 3:14
If I could design forever
Id put you and me together each night
Together each night
The best I can do is promise
Ill love you true and honest and right
Ill love you right
Chorus:
Starting tonight and from now on
I will be yours and yours alone
Dependable and strong
A rock by your side
Ill be beside you through the stom
Youll have a fire to keep you warm
Not just for now but from now on
Starting tonight
Ifa man ever loved a woman
Then surely this is the moment for me
The moment for me
Ive never known a feeling
So deep so real as being with you
As being with you
Repeat chorus
(c) 1990 maypop music (a division of wildcountry, inc.) bmi & new john music/the new crew/nwb music & the new company/wb music (ascap). all rights reserved.
song performed by by Alabama
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Out In The Street
Put on your best dress baby
And darlin, fix your hair up right
Cause theres a party, honey
Way down beneath the neon lights
All day youve been working that hard line
Now tonight youre gonna have a good time
I work five days a week girl
Loading crates down on the dock
I take my hard earned money
And meet my girl down on the block
And monday when the foreman calls time
Ive already got friday on my mind
When that whistle blows
Girl, Im down the street
Im home, Im out of my work clothes
When Im out in the street
I walk the way I wanna walk
When Im out in the street
I talk the way I wanna talk
When Im out in the street
When Im out in the street
When Im out in the street, girl
Well, I never feel alone
When Im out in the street, girl
In the crowd I feel at home
The black and whites they cruise by
And they watch us from the corner of their eye
But there aint no doubt girl, down here
We aint gonna take what theyre handing out
When Im out in the street
I walk the way I wanna walk
When Im out in the street
I talk the way I wanna talk
Baby, out in the street I dont feel sad or blue
Baby, out in the street Ill be waiting for you
When the whistle blows
Girl, Im down the street
Im home, Im out of my work clothes
When Im out in the street
I walk the way I wanna walk
When Im out in the street
I talk the way I wanna talk
When Im out in the street
Pretty girls, theyre all passing by
When Im out in the street
From the corner, we give them the eye
Baby, out in the street I just feel all right
Meet me out in the street, little girl, tonight
Meet me out in the street
Meet me out in the street
song performed by by Bruce Springsteen
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
One of the things that was kind of shocking for humans... was to come to terms with was the fact that, hey, we may not be the center of the universe.
quote by Kevin J. Anderson
Submitted by Lucian Velea
Vote! | Copy!
Dinner Guest: Me
I know I am
The Negro Problem
Being wined and dined,
Answering the usual questions
That come to white mind
Which seeks demurely
To Probe in polite way
The why and wherewithal
Of darkness U.S.A.--
Wondering how things got this way
In current democratic night,
Murmuring gently
Over fraises du bois,
"I'm so ashamed of being white."
The lobster is delicious,
The wine divine,
And center of attention
At the damask table, mine.
To be a Problem on
Park Avenue at eight
Is not so bad.
Solutions to the Problem,
Of course, wait.
poem by Langston Hughes
Submitted by Poetry Lover
Vote! | Copy!